


Stick Together

by TechnicalMachine



Series: Stick Together [1]
Category: Megamind - Fandom
Genre: Bad Decisions, Brotherly Love, Bullying, Cuz I like a good pun, Faking Death, Family Feels, Gen, I’ll Add More Tags if I Think of Them, Lots of “I thought you were dead” in this one folks, Megamind AU, Minion is a Sweetheart, Minor Character Death, Parent Death, Racism, Roxanne Ritchi is a Badass, Titan spelled Tighten, again it’s not a lot but it’s present, assumed major character death, if instead of getting knocked off course their pods stuck together, if that’s even a thing, not a lot but it’s there, not as much of that as I’d like but (again) it’s there, not the one that dies, terrible parent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:47:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23364925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TechnicalMachine/pseuds/TechnicalMachine
Summary: “The golden pod slammed into his own, and the magnetic surfaces stuck tight together...The two infants stared at each other in shock. Then they crashed into the new planet’s surface, and both suddenly had more important things to worry about.”Megamind AU where Wayne doesn’t knock Megamind into the prison yard, but instead their pods land in the Scott Mansion’s backyard together. Family Feels and Bad Decisions abound!A.K.A Everyone Thinks Everyone Else Is Dead
Relationships: Megamind & Metro Man, Megamind & Minion, Megamind & Roxanne Ritchi, Megamind/Roxanne Ritchi (heavily implied), Metro Man & Roxanne Ritchi
Series: Stick Together [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1788937
Comments: 22
Kudos: 190





	Stick Together

**Author's Note:**

> If my comics are visions from an angry god, my fanfics are their temper tantrums. Dedicated to my awesome sibling who let me read the whole thing to them (twice!) so I could track down the typos. Go check them out (TheHomestuckWhovian) if you want way better writing for a few different fandoms.

Hurtling away from the black hole and into the depths of space, the blue baby saw a glint of light in the distance. Clinging to the containment orb in his lap, he watched as another pod, painted gold, hurtled toward him from the other side of the rapidly disappearing star system. He watched the pod advance, paying no mind to the blue and green planet in the distance growing ever closer.

The golden pod slammed into his own, and the magnetic surfaces stuck tight together. Inside was another baby. He was chubbier, with peach colored skin, a tuft of brown hair, and an absolutely ridiculous hat.

The two infants stared at each other in shock. Then they crashed into the new planet’s surface, and both suddenly had more important things to worry about. The pods simultaneously hissed open. A shadow appeared over them and stared inside.

<*>

Lady Scott was a woman of principles. She was the type to do the things the way they ought to be done, and never did anything that could draw negative attention to herself or her husband. However, she had a soft spot when it came to babies. She couldn’t have children of her own, so when she investigated the loud crash in her yard and found a beautiful baby boy in a pod, she scooped him up immediately, principles be damned. Then she looked in the other pod and promptly screamed.

She caught her bearings quickly and took a second look. In the shabbier pod was what appeared to be another baby, but it was... wrong. Bright blue with a huge head, there was no question that this infant was alien. In its arms, it cradled a glass orb with a fish floating in it. Neither looked like anything she’d ever seen before.

Lord Scott had heard his wife’s scream and come running. He took one look at the babies and felt for them instantly. He was the one to convince his wife to take in the blue baby as well.

“We can keep him out of sight for now,” he assured her. “At least until we can get them citizenship.” Lady Scott agreed and Lord Scott swept up the blue infant and the strange glass orb. He held the orb up at eye level to examine the fish inside. It floated almost sideways, eyes closed. “Poor thing,” Lord Scott murmured. “Looks like it’s hurt.” Lady Scott was too distracted with cooing the humanoid child to hear.

Over the next few days, Lord Scott moved the pods and all their contents into the house. At his wife’s insistence, he kept all signs of the children’s true origins in the basement, including the little fish.

“Maybe when they’re older?” he asked. Lady Scott just pursed her lips and went back to finding something the boys would actually eat.

<*>

“You’re making that up!” Wayne shouted. Sheldon covered his ears. At five years old, Wayne may have outgrown his more explosive tendencies, but he still struggled with volume control. “Sorry,” he stage whispered.

“It’s fine.” Sheldon shook his head and waved a dismissive hand. “And I’m not! We fell from the sky!” He flung a finger up toward the ceiling dramatically. Wayne giggled.

“That’s so cool! We’re like Superman!” He rolled over on his back and raised both hands flat palmed above him.

“Well, you are anyway. I don’t have any superpowers.” Sheldon wasn’t jealous per se. It just didn’t seem fair that Wayne got to have cool powers and look like Mom and Dad. Sheldon got stuck with a big head, a cobalt complexion, and nothing else.

“You’re super smart!” Wayne declared. “Like BATMAN!” Sheldon couldn’t help but grin at that comparison. He liked Batman better anyway. Not least of all for the cooler outfits.

“What are you boys up to?” They turned to the doorway to see their mother leaning against the doorframe with a look of playful suspicion on her face.

“Mommy, Mommy!” Wayne cried, jumping to his feet. He stayed suspended a half inch off the ground, not that he noticed. “Sheldon was telling me about how we came from space!” He bobbed up and down excitedly. Sheldon rose more slowly.

“Oh?” Mom seemed a bit startled, her smile frozen on her face. “Where did you hear that, Sheldon?” Sheldon frowned.

“Nowhere,” he stated. “I remember it.”

“What?” she whispered. Sheldon thought she looked a bit shell-shocked.

“Yeah.” He reached for Wayne’s sleeve and pulled him down to the ground. Wayne smiled cheerfully.

“What’s for lunch?” Wayne asked, too young to really read the room. Sheldon resolved to teach him that next. After volume control. Mom didn’t react. “HEY MOM!” Wayne’s yell rang through the house; the vases on the coffee table rattled with the volume of it. Sheldon blocked his ears again, and Mom finally snapped out of her trance. “What’s for lunch?’

<*>

The sound of the door shutting pulled Wayne and Sheldon out of the episode of Mythbusters they’d been watching.

“I’m home!”

“Daddy!” the two six year olds screamed in unison. They bolted for the door where their father was carefully setting his keys on the little table. Wayne slid to a stop before carefully leaning forward to hug Dad. Sheldon just ran full tilt into him, not needing to worry about super strength.

“Oof,” Dad huffed dramatically. “You two are getting so big you just about knocked me off my feet!” Nobody bothered mentioning that Wayne could’ve done that anyway. “What have you two been up to?”

He let them drag him into the living room where the show was playing. Sheldon dramatically introduced his latest invention: a tracking device for Dad’s keys so he would stop losing them, and Wayne showed off how high he could float now. Mom walked in just as Dad was carefully setting Wayne back on the ground.

“How’d it go?” she asked softly. Dad pulled her in for a hug.

“Fighting fit!” he proudly announced. Sheldon frowned, but stayed silent. Wayne grinned and bobbed up and down in the air. Mom... she looked even more concerned than Sheldon.

“And you’re sure about this?” she softly asked as she leaned into him. Dad kissed her gently on the forehead, and Sheldon and Wayne both made exaggerated gagging sounds. With a grin, Dad ruffled Wayne’s hair and rubbed Sheldon’s head gingerly.

“Look what I have to fight for,” he responded simply.

<*>

“Really Sheldon, why can’t you be more like your brother?” Sheldon winced at the comparison. Mom had been asking him that a lot lately. He hated it. “He hasn’t caused an explosion since he was three months old. Surely at 8 you should know better!”

“I didn’t blow it up on purpose,” Sheldon insisted. “I just—”

“That’s no excuse,” Mom’s arms were crossed in that way that allowed no argument. “You have to be more careful!” Sheldon winced but nodded. Better to let her say her piece than to argue and get in even more trouble. “How am I ever supposed to get you two enrolled in an actual school if I have to worry about you destroying the place?” Sheldon tactfully didn’t mention that Wayne was much more likely to cause an explosion. What Mom didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.

“Sorry,” he whispered. Mom just sighed and shook her head.

“Apology accepted. Just... don’t do it again?” she pleaded. Sheldon nodded again. “Good. Now, go play.” She waved him off, and he took the opportunity to run for his and Wayne’s room. The house had plenty of space for them to have separate rooms, but Dad had wanted to build them bunk beds. They didn’t mind.

“Are you alright? Did you get in trouble? Are you grounded?” Wayne rambled as soon as Sheldon shut the door. He floated practically nose to nose with him. “Did you ask her that question you wanted to ask yet?”

“Yes, a bit, no, and,” Sheldon let out a long sigh. “No.” Wayne drooped.

“And you still won’t tell me what it is?”

“Not until I know for sure,” Sheldon replied for what must’ve been the 30th time. He sighed again. “She told me to be like you again.” Wayne’s face scrunched up.

“Sorry,” he whispered. Sheldon waved him off.

“It’s not your fault.” Wayne still looked upset. “I’ll ask her tonight, okay?” He perked up.

“And then you’ll tell me?” he asked excitedly. Sheldon chuckled quietly.

“Then I’ll tell you.”

Wayne cheered.

<*>

“Hey, Mom?”

She startled and quickly turned to look at him. When she saw who it was, she drooped slightly.

“Hey there,” she replied softly.

“I have a question,” Sheldon said shakily before he could lose his nerve. She nodded. He gulped and walked to stand next to her chair. “Where...” he paused, realizing she wouldn’t know who he was talking about. “When we landed, I had someone with me,” he began again. He shook slightly. “Where is he?” She wouldn’t look at him. A pang of something shot through him, fear or sadness maybe. “Where’s Minion?”

She shook her head.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. Sheldon could only think of one thing that could mean. He felt his eyes well up with tears.

“You mean—” he cut off with a sob. Mom lifted him into her arms and held him as he cried. She felt a rare stab of guilt, but said nothing. She just rubbed his back gently and let him cry.

<*>

He didn’t tell Wayne

<*>

Everyone liked Wayne. He was handsome, and nice, and strong, and he could fly! What little kid could resist all that?

When Wayne and Sheldon finally began school at age ten, kids flocked to Wayne like he was a celebrity. Suddenly, he was surrounded by other people who thought he was cool. Wayne felt on top of the world!

Sheldon felt like the bottom of the ocean. Nobody liked him. He was weird, and blue, and shaped all wrong. Why would anyone want to be around him? He sat away from Wayne in class; he didn’t want to ruin his brother’s chance at friends, too.

Wayne tracked him down during lunch.

“Why didn’t you sit with me in class?” he asked around a bite of ham and cheese sandwich.

“You were busy,” Sheldon definitely wasn’t deflecting. Definitely not. He picked at his egg salad and avoid Wayne’s eyes. He didn’t eat tuna anymore, even though it was his favourite. Wayne didn’t ask why.

“Well, you should sit with me anyway.” Wayne was stubborn. Sheldon sighed and opened his mouth to protest when:

“Wayne, why are you sitting with that weirdo?” Wayne’s head shot up and he gaped at the girl in front of him. One of the classmates that had sat with him earlier, Sheldon noticed. Wayne let out a vague confused noise and the girl frowned. “Come sit with us instead.” He blinked.

“He’s not weird.”

“Yes he is,” the girl scoffed. “Just look at him!” Wayne did. He turned back to the girl.

“I don’t get it,” Wayne said. Sheldon couldn’t decide if he was exasperated or flattered.

“He’s freaky,” she replied simply. Wayne frowned.

“No he’s not!” he insisted. “He’s my brother; he’s not weird.” The girl frowned back.

“How can he be your brother? He’s blue!” Her friends giggled. Wayne hadn’t even noticed them before.

“He just is!” Wayne was starting to get angry, and Sheldon put a hand on his arm to get his attention.

“Don’t get mad,” he whispered urgently. “Mom will be upset.” Wayne took a deep breath and nodded.

“We’re not friends anymore,” he said to the girl. She looked briefly upset, but then she just seemed angry.

“Fine! I don’t want to be friends with a freak anyway!” She huffed off. Wayne watched mutely as she stomped away, a bewildered expression on his face.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Sheldon said.

“Yeah, I did,” Wayne turned to grin at him. “She was a jerk. I don’t want to be friends with a jerk, anyway.” Sheldon grinned back.

When they returned to the classroom, Wayne sat stubbornly next to Sheldon and declared:

“If you don’t want to be friends with my brother, I don’t want to be friends with you!” Everyone, including Sheldon, stared at him. Then, everyone else took their seats. Nobody sat with Wayne and Sheldon. Sheldon expected his brother to be upset at losing all his new friends, but he just looked angry. “You’re all jerks!” he declared, scandalized.

The teacher walked in and paused. She noticed the tension in the room and the new seating arrangement, but she said nothing. She just sat at her desk and pulled out her roll sheet.

<*>

“We’re gonna play heroes and villains. You guys wanna play???” Wayne and Sheldon looked up in shock. One of the boys that had talked to Wayne on the first day was looking at them.

“Us?” Sheldon asked tentatively. The boy gave a toothy grin.

“Of course!” He held out a hand. Wayne was already floating excitedly, so Sheldon cautiously took the kid’s hand. The boy carefully pulled him to his feet. “You guys have actual superpowers, so it’s perfect!” Sheldon frowned.

“Only Wayne has superpowers,” he corrected. The kid frowned momentarily, then grinned again.

“That’s fine,” he said. “You can still play!”

Sheldon was in disbelief. No one had invited him to play before. They’d asked Wayne sometimes, and Wayne even agreed a couple of times, at Sheldon’s insistence, but no one ever invited him.

He probably should’ve seen this part coming.

“Okay, we’ll be the heroes,” another kid declared, pointing to herself, Wayne, and the other boy one by one. “And you’ll be the villain!” She pointed to Sheldon.

“What?” he, Wayne, and the other boy all asked at once.

“We have to have a villain,” the girl insisted, “and he’s perfect for it.”

“What do you mean?” Sheldon asked.

“Yeah, what do you mean?” Wayne repeated a bit more angrily.

“Well, he’s wearing all black,” she began, “and he builds stuff, and he’s always getting in trouble! It works out perfectly.” Sheldon was surprised that she didn’t point out his obviously inhuman appearance. Huh.

“Well,” Wayne said, “I’ll be a villain, too!”

“You can’t!” the girl declared. “You’re wearing white! Plus, it wouldn’t be fair!”

“It’s fine,” Sheldon interrupted. “I don’t mind.”

“You sure?” Wayne gave him the concerned face. Sheldon hated the concerned face.

“Positive.”

Sheldon ended up getting in trouble for taking apart a clock to build a “trap” for the heroes. On their way inside, the boy ran up to him.

“I’m Jace,” he said, holding out a hand.

“I’M CAMERON!” the girl shouted from her class’ line. She was quickly shushed. Sheldon laughed and shook Jace’s hand.

“Sheldon.”

<*>

Something was wrong.

Mom had been reading the mail after dinner, same as always, when she’d gone completely still. Wayne and Sheldon looked up from where they were reading on the rug. Wayne’s comic sagged as he stared at her.

“Mom?” he asked slowly. She shook her head and pursed her lips. She didn’t say a word. Sheldon closed the cover of the automotive manual he was reading.

“What’s wrong?” Her eyes welled up with tears. Wayne flew carefully toward her, focusing intently on moving exactly how he wanted. She caught him out of the air gently and held him to her chest. Then, she reached out toward Sheldon.

That’s when he knew.

“Dad?” He asked shakily, making his way toward her. He clambered up into the seat as she shook her head again and sobbed quietly. Both boys were held tight to her chest, and Sheldon knew, even if Wayne hadn’t quite caught up yet.

Mom hadn’t held Sheldon since she told him about Minion.

Dad was gone.

<*>

“How about hide ‘n seek?” Sheldon asked. The summer break after they turned 13 was one of the most boring. Cameron and Jace were both on family vacations, and Wayne was getting cranky. A bored Wayne is a dangerous Wayne, according to Dad.

“We already know all the hiding places,” Wayne whined. “Besides, I can see through walls now, remember?” Right. Wayne was developing new powers all the time now. He was hoping for laser eyes. Sheldon was hoping not.

“Well then, Superboy, why don’t you tell me what you can see with that x-ray vision of yours?” Might as well make him practice. Wayne’s control over his powers was shaky at best. 

“I-Spy?” Wayne sat up and looked at Sheldon hopefully. 

“Sure.”

“Yes!” He shot up off the ground and very nearly hit the ceiling. Sheldon grabbed him by the ankle and pulled him back down.

“Careful,” he chided. Wayne rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

“Right. Sorry.” Shaking himself, he focused on the wall in front of him. “I spy with my x-ray eye,” he ignored Sheldon’s groan. “Something... shiny!” Sheldon snorted.

“Hmm... Mom’s mirror?”

“Bingo.”

“Too easy.”

“Fine.” Wayne looked up at the ceiling. “I spy with my x-ray eye, something... sad.” Sheldon shot him a small frown.

“Dad’s flag?” He’d hid it under his bed a few weeks ago. It had been a year since they got the letter, but Wayne still couldn’t look at that dumb flag without getting mopey and upset. Sheldon wouldn’t admit it, but he felt the same way.

“Yep.” Wayne sounded more subdued. He looked down sadly and blinked. The sadness faded into confusion. “I spy something weird.”

“Weird?” Sheldon leaned forward to examine his brother closely. “Weird how?”

“It’s in the basement. I’m not supposed to look in the basement!” Wayne tore his eyes away from the floor and to Sheldon. He flinched and blinked a few times to turn off the x-ray vision. It took several attempts, but he refused to look around again until he succeeded. Wayne hated seeing people’s bones.

“Wayne, weird how?” Sheldon insisted. Wayne flushed and turned his head away. _“Wayne.”_

“Okay, okay!” He leaned toward his brother conspiratorially. “But you have to promise not to tell Mom I looked.”

“Of course!” Sheldon was offended he’d even asked. “I wouldn't rat you out like that.”

“Promise.” Wayne was insistent and maybe a bit desperate.

“I promise.”

“Okay,” Wayne whispered. “It was something hollow and kinda oval shaped.” He drew an oval in the air with both hands. “It was transparent in the front and shiny.” He leaned back to judge Sheldon’s reaction. “Weird right?” Sheldon wore an expression even Wayne couldn’t read.

“That sounds like...” he paused. “We gotta go check it out!”

“We cant!” Wayne was absolutely scandalized. “Mom said we’re not allowed to go in the basement!”

“Wayne,” Sheldon began, but Wayne interrupted him.

“You’ll get in trouble again! _I’ll_ get in trouble!” Wayne never got in trouble if he could help it. “We can’t!”

“Wayne, listen.” Sheldon snapped in front of Wayne’s face to catch his attention. “Remember how I said we came from space?”

Wayne slowly nodded. He’d stopped believing that story years ago. He always figured Sheldon had been messing with him, and Mom had never said anything about it.

Sheldon continued:

“Well, what you just described sounds like the pods we landed in!” Sheldon was bouncing in place, more excited than Wayne had seen him in years. “If Mom saved the pods, maybe I can salvage some of the tech for my inventions! Imagine the kind of things I could make from tech like that!” As much as he wanted to, Wayne couldn’t argue with Sheldon when he was so... pumped.

“Fine,” he said, “but if we get caught—”

“I’ll take the blame,” Sheldon replied instantly. Wayne shook his head at him.

“I was going to say, ‘don’t mention the x-ray vision,’” Wayne corrected. “If we’re gonna break the rules together, we’re gonna get in trouble together.” Sheldon smiled. Wayne always was more justice-minded than him.

“Deal.”

<*>

It took them a while to find the basement door, but between Wayne’s x-ray vision and Sheldon’s brain, they got there eventually. They stood at the top of the stairs and peered down into the darkness.

“Are you sure about this?” Wayne asked for about the 50th time.

“I want that tech, Wayne.” He shot him a reassuring smile. “I’ll explain that to Mom if it comes down to it.” Wayne held his gaze for a moment, then gulped and looked back at the stairs.

“Alright, let’s go.” They couldn’t find a light switch at the top of the stairs, but Wayne had seen a pull string when he’d been looking for them. He offered to go on ahead and turn it on, but Sheldon could see he wasn’t thrilled by the prospect and turned him down.

“We do this together,” he reminded. Wayne weakly smiled, and they crept down the stairs together. Sheldon’s night vision was better than Wayne’s, but it was still developing. The basement was pitch black to Wayne, and just barely visible to Sheldon. They had no idea how many steps were left when Sheldon tripped. He screamed and was embarrassed to find he’d only fallen two steps.

“Sheldon! Are you okay?” Wayne was floating somewhere above him. He must’ve jumped when Sheldon screamed and just hadn’t landed.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Sheldon groaned. He carefully pushed himself up on his hands. “I think the light is up there with you.” After a moment, the room filled with light. Both boys winced. Slowly, they pried their eyes open. Sheldon gasped.

The room in front of them was lit with one strong LED bulb and string after string of fairy lights. The pods leaned against one wall, and most of the rest of the room was filled with bits of machinery and gadgets. Wayne couldn’t help but whistle. He’d always thought Sheldon had more in common with Dad than Mom, but he hadn’t realized to what degree. None of this is what had caught Sheldon’s eye and drew that gasp from his lips.

No, what drew Sheldon’s attention was the ginormous fish tank that made up most of the back wall of the room. Inside was the strangest fish Wayne had ever seen staring shocked back at them. Sheldon gaped at the tank, pulled himself to his feet, and sprinted for it.

_“MINION!”_ Sheldon’s voice cracked, and his eyes brimmed with tears.

“Sir?!” The fish replied in awe. Wayne dropped out of the air in surprise. That fish just talked??? And his brother seemed to know it???

Sheldon fell to his knees in front of the tank. His hands and forehead rested against the glass. The fish, Minion, swam up to him and pressed its own forehead against Sheldon’s through the wall.

“I thought you were dead,” Sheldon sobbed. Wayne looked on in stunned silence.

“I thought _you_ were dead!” Minion made a strangled keening sound that may have been a laugh or a sob. “Where have you _been?”_

“Upstairs!” Sheldon finally pulled his head away from the glass to look into Minion’s eyes. “I was upstairs the whole time!” Suddenly, his face fell. “This whole time...” His expression darkened into something cold. “You were down here this whole time!” He leapt to his feet and whirled on Wayne. “He was down here this whole time! She lied to me!” Wayne startled out of his shock.

“Who...?” Sheldon paused, seething. He forced himself to take a deep breath.

“That’s... right. You wouldn’t know,” he sighed. “Wayne, this is Minion.” He gestured to the fish. “Minion, Wayne. My adopted brother.”

“A pleasure to meet you,” Minion said, confused but amicable. Wayne couldn’t help but smile.

“Likewise,” he replied. Sheldon smiled softly, but his frown returned after a split second.

“Minion is...” he searched for the right words. “Family,” he finished decisively. “He was with me when we left our home planet. He was with me when we landed.” Sheldon’s hands curled into fists by his side. “He was with me when Mo- _she_ found us.” He was shaking. Wayne took a careful step toward him. “Remember the question? When we were little? _That_ was the question! Asking where he was. She let me think he was _dead,_ Wayne!” Wayne pulled him into a hug as he started to cry again. “She said ‘I’m sorry,’ and she let me mourn, and she _didn’t tell me!”_ Minion made a distressed noise behind them. Wayne shot him a desperate look, but he just pressed closer to the glass. “He was here, and she didn’t tell me,” Sheldon finished pathetically.

“I’m sorry,” Wayne whispered. “I’m really sorry. I should’ve looked sooner, I’m sorry.”

“It’s not you fault,” Sheldon sniffled. “You didn’t know, either.” His head shot up, and he took a quick step back. “Dad did, though.” He whirled around to look at Minion. “Didn’t he?” Minion frowned.

“Mr. Scott?” he asked slowly. That was all the answer Sheldon needed. Tears welled up in his eyes again. “He was building me something.” Minion, desperate to distract Sir from his sadness—or maybe it was anger?—gestured with one fin to a pile of metal near the middle of the room. Wayne had just dismissed it as scrap, but Sheldon took one look at it and said:

“An exosuit?” He approached it almost reverently. He ran a gentle hand over the metal structure. “Why would he...?”

Wayne decided to give Sheldon a moment and took the opportunity to examine the pods. One was bit fancier than the other. In that one, he found a soda drinking hat with baby bottles attached. He snorted at that and carefully moved it aside. Beneath it, he found what looked like some kind of baby rattle, with a handle and a round bit on the top and everything. He picked it up to see if it would make a sound, but froze. As soon as he’d touched the rattle he felt... something. Like he’d been suddenly righted after spending his whole life not realizing he was off-balance.

“Whoa,” he murmured. Sheldon tore his attention away from the suit to watch Wayne stare in awe at the thing in his hand.

“What is it?” He strode up to Wayne and examined the rattle, then turned his attention to Wayne’s face.

“I feel different,” Wayne said, not taking his eyes off the thing. “More... steady?” Sheldon’s expression shifted, and he held out his hand.

“May I?” Wayne hesitated. Were it anyone else, he would’ve turned them down, but it wasn’t anyone else. He trusted Sheldon.

“Sure.” He passed the rattle to Sheldon, who took it, hissed, and shoved it back into Wayne’s hands. “Whoa, you alright?”

“It’s meant for you,” Sheldon explained, completely ignoring the question and shaking out his hand like it had been burned. Minion made a concerned sound behind them, and Sheldon gave him a reassuring smile. He turned his attention back to his brother. “It appears to be designed to help you control your powers?”

“What?” Wayne breathed. He clutched the rattle closer to his chest. It seemed Sheldon wasn’t the only one Mom and Dad had hid things from.

Sheldon nodded solemnly as though he’d been thinking the same thing. They shared a look for a moment before turning simultaneously to Sheldon’s pod. They approached slowly and peered inside. Laying on the seat was a blue binky giving off a soft blue glow. Sheldon’s eyes darkened again.

“We can’t stay here,” he announced, suddenly and with conviction.

“What!” Wayne shouted.

“They hid this stuff from us! Stuff we _needed!”_ Sheldon shouted back. He shook his head violently. “Look, you can stay if you want, but Minion and I have to go,” he finished softly.

“Sheldon—”

“That’s not my name!” Loud again. “That’s what _she_ named me, but she doesn’t have the right!” He was shaking. “Not after what she did.” 

Wayne nodded slowly and held his hands up in a placating manner.

“Okay, okay. What do you want to be called?” Shel— he remained silent for a moment.

“Syx,” he finally declared. Minion gave an appreciative hum from his tank.

“Good choice sir.”

“What's it mean?” Wayne asked patiently.

“It’s what my parents called me. My alien parents. It’s a... a term of endearment?” Sh— Syx turned to Minion for confirmation. The fish bobbed in a way reminiscent of a nod. Wayne didn’t say so out loud, but he approved.

“Okay. Syx,” Wayne said. “Remember what I said before? We’re in this together.” Syx gave him a watery smile. “What do we need? We still have some time ‘til Mom...” he paused to think for a moment, then shook his head. “Gets home,” he finished lamely.

“We’ll need food. Could you grab some from upstairs? Nothing that goes bad. And Da— Lord Scott’s camping backpack. I can’t lift it.”

Wayne nodded and flew up the stairs. Meanwhile, Syx dug around the basement a bit until he found Minion’s old containment unit. He examined it for damage, and deeming it fully functional, tucked it under his arm. He paused and looked at the exosuit. It was nearly finished, by the look of it, and it wouldn’t take long to complete.

“I wonder if Wayne could lift it,” he mused. Examining it, he set down the containment unit and attempted to judge the weight of the suit. He was shocked to find it light enough that even he could probably carry it a short distance. Well, it would be a waste to leave it behind, now wouldn’t it? He grinned. “Hey, Minion?”

“Yes, sir?”

“How do you feel about learning to walk?”

<*>

“We can’t steal, Syx,” Wayne said for maybe the 80th time.

“We can’t starve either, Wayne.” Syx replied yet again. “And we can’t get jobs yet.” He flung his hands up. “And even if we could, we shouldn’t. She’d find us.”

Lady Scott had filed missing persons reports as soon as legally possible after they left. That was a few months ago. Too recent for Syx to erase, but running on too long for the boys’ meager supplies. With the police and Lady Scott’s many _connections_ looking for them, they’d had to go literally underground. Wayne could easily lift the heavy manhole covers now that he had some decent control over his powers, and Syx quickly memorized the layout of the sewer tunnels. And with Wayne’s x-ray vision, even if someone thought to check the sewers, they’d have a hard time tracking the kids down.

But if they didn’t get a reliable source of food soon, none of that would matter.

“I can’t condone stealing, Syx!” Wayne insisted. Apparently, not even for a very good reason.

“You got a better idea? It’s not like Minion can hunt for us. He can barely keep himself fed, as it is, with Metro City’s shitty polluted harbor.” Syx flopped backward onto the ground in his frustration.

Wayne bit down a comment on Syx’s language. 

“We need to make some money,” Wayne thought aloud. “If we could buy food, we wouldn’t _need_ to steal any.”

“How do you suggest we do that?”

Wayne just shrugged. Syx was the resident idea guy.

Said idea guy let out a long sigh. Wayne was counting on him to come up with a good plan, but Syx just couldn’t focus. It was almost as bad as school had been, except now at least he knew why he couldn’t think straight. Minion had explained all about the mind-link thing a few weeks ago. Apparently, if they were too far apart, the link was too strained. No wonder Lady Scott hadn’t just thrown Minion into the harbor. That would’ve made for one fussy baby.

Minion promised that over time the range would increase, and, by the time he was an adult, it would be functionally infinite. Syx couldn’t wait.

Slowly, he felt his brain settle.

“Minion’s coming back,” he murmured.

Wayne pat his back gently. Distantly, Syx was relieved Wayne had found that rattle. A year ago a pat like that risked launching him across the room. Not that it would hurt him much. Syx had always been more durable than a human.

That... That actually gave him an idea.

“There’s a thought,” he whispered. “What if—”

“I’m back, Sirs,” Minion called as he surfaced. Syx lifted him carefully out of the dirty water into his nice, clean containment unit, then reattached that to the exosuit. Minion sat carefully, crossing his metal legs. “Did I miss anything exciting?”

“Syx has an idea,” Wayne said slowly. “About getting money?”

Syx nodded.

“You probably won’t like it,” he began. Minion and Wayne both frowned. “Hear me out! You remember playing heroes and villains?”

<*>

“I call it: The De-Gun!” Syx announced dramatically. Minion enthusiastically applauded from his place on the couch, but Wayne next to him just tilted his head in confusion.

“What’s it do?”

“What doesn’t it do!” Syx bounced on the balls of his feet. “It dehydrates, it debilitates, it demoralizes! It... decoupages,” he finished lamely.

“Huh,” Wayne nodded appreciatively. “Does it destroy?”

“It does!” Syx perked up again. “I incorporated the technology from the B.I.N.K.E.Y!” He leaned over Wayne and held the gun in front of him so he could see inside. Sure enough, there was a familiar blue glow. “I used a similar technique to add a laser to Minion’s suit, as well!”

He turned to Minion who gladly demonstrated on an empty soup can. The laser burned a neat hole through the center. Syx then turned a dial on the de-gun.

“Watch this!” He pointed the gun at the can and fired. The can shrunk down into a tiny blue cube. Wayne gave a low whistle. “That’s the dehydrate setting!”

“Impressive.”

Syx glanced at him.

“You seem un-enthused,” he remarked.

“Oh, no, I like it,” Wayne assured “I just had a cool idea, is all.”

Syx vaulted over the back of the couch to sit between Wayne and Minion. He leaned toward Wayne excitedly.

“Spill,” he demanded.

” _Well,”_ Wayne drawled. “Every evil villain needs a robot army.”

The grin that formed on Syx’s face was _truly_ evil.

<*>

Wayne gazed up at the horde of floating bots in awe.

“How’s this for a robot army!” Syx called from where he stood on top of two bots. “I call them: Brain-Bots!”

<*>

“You won’t get away with this, Megamind!” Wayne yelled as he swooped in through a window. He paused. That was new. “Let her go!”

Tied to a chair in the middle of the room, with a ‘death ray’ pointed at her, was a woman that Wayne found vaguely familiar. He’d met so many people since starting this whole hero thing, that he couldn’t quite place her, but he felt like he’d met her somewhere before. He tried not to feel too guilty about that.

“Why don’t you come save her, Metro Mahn?” Syx taunted. He was a good actor. Only Wayne and Minion could tell he wasn’t _actually_ evil.

The ‘fight’ this time was a bit different. Their attacks hadn’t been telegraphed since they were sixteen, a good six years ago now, but they both knew they couldn’t make it obvious they were holding back when they had a witness right there in the room with them. They both fought a little harder, confident in the other’s abilities. 

Eventually, Syx feigned an opening, and ‘Metro Man’ won the battle. He untied the woman, _what was her name?,_ and flew her and ‘Megamind’ to the City Hall Plaza. There he conveniently got distracted so Syx could ‘escape.’ The swarm of reporters made for a good excuse; everyone wanted the story of how Metro Man bested Megamind’s most recent ‘evil plan.’

If Wayne was being honest, he found all the mental air quotes a little exhausting.

When they got home, he couldn’t help but ask:

“A hostage? Really?”

“I told you it was a bad idea, Sir,” Minion chimed. Syx frowned.

“It’s not a bad idea; he never said it was a bad idea!” Wayne copied his brother’s expression.

“I never said it _wasn’t_ a bad idea,” he pointed out, much to Syx’s chagrin and Minion’s smug satisfaction.

“People aren’t taking Megamind seriously enough,” Syx complained. “They were starting to catch on; I needed to raise the stakes.” He waved a dismissive hand. “Besides, every Superman needs a Lois Lane, and Miss Ritchi is a great candidate.”

“Are you?” Wayne paused. He knew he’d recognized that woman. She was the one from the exclusive interview he gave a few weeks ago. _Focus Wayne._ “Are you trying to set me up with that reporter?”

“Ew, no,” Syx gagged. “Definitely not.”

“Then what—”

“A damsel in distress,” Syx interrupted in exasperation. He’d thought that was rather obvious. “It’s a more compelling story. Miss Ritchi may not be the easiest to scare, but she _is_ a reporter. She can cover our battles from up close. It’s a win-win! She gets a good story, and we sell more Metro Mahn merchandise!” Syx spun a bit on his heel as he spoke. “We may not be paying bills, but you eat more every year, and we need to be able to support that super metabolism of yours.”

Wayne sighed. He had a point, but:

“What if something goes wrong?” Wayne wrung his hands and resisted the urge to fiddle with the rattle tucked into the holster Minion had lovingly crafted for it.

“I have failsafes on top of failsafes,” Syx declared proudly. “I’m not going to let anything happen to her.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you _liked_ her,” Wayne teased.

Syx flushed a purplish pink all the way up to his ears.

“Nonsense!” He shook his head violently as if to dislodge the thought. “It’s for the show, that’s all.”

_”_ _Right.”_ Wayne and Minion shared an amused look. Oh, they definitely weren’t letting that one go.

<*>

Wayne was starting to get tired of being a hero.

He loved Metro City, really he did, but he was tired of helping everyone with every little thing! It was fine when it was just Megamind, but then people started calling on him for other things. Actual peril he could understand. He had no problem saving people from muggers who hadn’t gotten the memo about Megamind’s rules, burning buildings, collapses, whatever. But saving cats from trees? Unloading people’s groceries? And, worst of all, press conferences? No, thank you.

“I’ve been thinking about retiring Metro Man,” Wayne mentioned offhandedly one day. Syx frowned.

“What would you do instead?” He didn’t sound accusatory. Just curious.

“I dunno. Maybe music?”

Syx winced, and Wayne couldn’t help but laugh.

“Maybe not. I just can’t handle all these people asking me for things. They’re running me ragged!”

“That’s fair,” Minion said, walking into the room in his new exosuit. He wanted it to look like a gorilla, for reasons even Syx couldn’t comprehend. He handed Wayne a plate with a comically tall stack of sandwiches on it. “How do you retire a hero, though?”

“Especially since we can’t just retire Megamind?” Syx chimed. 

That was true enough. Megamind ran an entire criminal empire! He did as much to save the people of Metro City as Metro Man did, even if they couldn’t see it. Megamind’s Rules for Criminals™ kept the streets _relatively_ safe while still allowing criminals to turn a profit. It was kinda like Robin Hood, in a way. At least, that’s how he’d explained it to Wayne.

“I dunno,” Wayne shrugged. “Maybe Megamind could kill him?”

The whole lair seemed to fall silent at that suggestion. Minion and Syx gaped at him

“What?”

“No, absolutely not,” Syx declared.

“It wouldn’t actually kill me,” Wayne quickly clarified. He wasn’t even sure he could be killed, but he wasn’t about to say that part out loud. “Just, y’know. Fake his death.”

Syx shook his head violently.

“We can’t!” He looked desperately at Minion.

“Sir,” Minion began in that soft voice that meant he was about to say something one of them didn’t want to hear. ”There’s a lot that could go wrong with a plan like that.”

“Exactly!” Syx leapt to his feet and paced the room. “No one could see you in public afterward! Wayne, you can’t exactly hide behind a secret identity; we never accounted for that! Your face is all over this city! And what if something came up that needed Metro Mahn? What if a new villain showed up?”

“ _You_ could fight them,” Wayne pointed out. Syx may not have Wayne’s powers, but he did have years of battle experience to fall back on. These days, their battles were barely staged at all, much to Minion’s chagrin.

“But I’m the villain!”

“You don’t have to be,” Wayne replied softly.

“Of course I do!” Syx snapped. 

Minion decided to put a stop to this before it could escalate further.

“Sirs, maybe it would be best to talk about this at another time?” He seemed desperate. “I’m sure we could work something out if we had some time to _calm down.”_

“What would Megamind even have to _do_ without Metro Mahn?” Syx asked, half ignoring Minion. “What would Megamind do if he won? Would I have to actually take over the city? I would, wouldn’t I? I can’t fake my death, too! I stand out even more than you do!”

“It was just a thought,” Wayne said, stepping back. “That’s all.”

Syx forced himself to take a deep breath and relax.

“Sorry,” he said when he composed himself. “I don’t mean to shoot down the whole idea of retiring, but...” He trailed off. Whatever he’d been about to say, he’d thought better of it. “We’ll figure something out, alright? Later?”

Wayne sighed.

“Alright.”

<*>

Roxanne Ritchi was pretty sure that Metro Man let Megamind go on purpose. He never seemed to be able to keep track of the villain, and that made no sense to her. Maybe Metro Man liked the challenge? Whatever the reason, Roxanne was sure there was no way Megamind was really that good an escape artist.

Roxanne was also sure that something was wrong. Megamind hadn’t kidnapped her in weeks. Weeks! It was unlike him. He usually snatched her up once a week or so, provided she wasn’t busy or sick.

That was another thing. Megamind was oddly... considerate? Not like Minion, who was frankly a sweetheart, and, early on, she’d been completely unable to comprehend why he’d serve someone like Megamind. No, Megamind was a weird sort of polite. She never really felt like she was in any actual danger with him.

She had at first, but then that rope snapped. She’d been dangling from the rafters by a rope that was, apparently, not as strong as advertised. She still hadn’t screamed as she plummeted to the floor—it was a point of pride now—but she’d still been terrified. 

Right up until she hit the floor and discovered it was significantly more elastic than it appeared.

Megamind had been absolutely frantic, she remembered. He kept asking if she was alright and apologizing for the sub-par rope. She knew then that he wasn’t as bad a guy as he claimed.

Which brought her thoughts back to the present, nearly a month since the last kidnapping, worried.

“You alright there, Rox-a-roo?” Ugh, Hal. He must’ve noticed she wasn’t listening to his rambling. 

She bit back a groan.

“Fine, Hal. Just distracted.”

“Oh, good! Anyways, I was wondering if you wanted to go to this new restaurant with me tonight; it’s got—”

“Sorry, Hal. Busy tonight,” she lied. Would this guy take a hint already?

“Oh. How about—?”

“Oh, y’know what? I left my jacket in my office!” Roxanne quickly stepped away. “Let me just go grab that.”

She rounded the van and was immediately face to face with a can of knockout spray.

<*>

“Miss Ritchi, we meet—”

“Where the heck have you been!” Roxanne interrupted.

Megamind’s mouth snapped shut.

“It’s been weeks! I thought ee-vil,” she copied his tone, “never rests?”

He blinked at her. Syx was instantly conflicted. On the one hand, he couldn’t very well say, “Metro Man is actually my brother, and he desperately needed some time off.” On the other hand, she sounded worried for some reason. He felt bad lying to her.

“Well, uh,” he stammered. _Think of something!_ “I was a bit... short on ideas... these past few weeks.” He said it like he was admitting to something embarrassing, but internally he was sighing in relief. That sounded believable, right?

“Oh,” Roxanne said. She hadn’t expected something so... mundane. “Well—”

She was cut off by Metro Man crashing through a window with more gusto than she’d seen from him in a while.

“Release her, Megamind!” he cried.

“Make me!” Megamind responded petulantly. Roxanne sat back and resigned herself to watch as the battle commenced.

<*>

Wayne was going to be in so much trouble for this. If Syx didn’t actually kill him for this one, Minion would. But he was so _tired_ _._ They couldn’t keep taking breaks because Roxanne would get suspicious, and he didn’t want to upset Syx by bringing up retiring again. So he decided to take matters into his own hands.

In hindsight, that may have been the _worst_ plan.

When the death ray—an actual death ray for humans; Megamind had been called out online for not “trying hard enough,” apparently—fired, Metro Man accelerated into invisibility and hid in his room until he heard the invisible car leave, presumably with Miss Ritchie. He didn’t see what happened.

Roxanne did. At least, the first part of it.

She saw the laser hit. She saw Metro Man’s cape flutter to the floor. She heard a pained cry—Metro Man’s maybe? When she finally tore her eyes away from where Metro Man had been— _don’t think about it, Roxanne—_ she saw Megamind. He was staring staring fixedly at the point where Metro Man had been standing moments ago. He held one hand over his mouth and... were his eyes watering? Then Minion was in front of her with the knockout spray and an unreadable expression.

Then she woke up at home.

Minion saw all of it.

He saw the cape land on the ground. He quickly slammed the button to shut off the broadcast— _n_ _ot part of the plan, not part of the plan at all, he was supposed to dodge,_ why _didn’t he_ dodge??? He saw Sir scream. He saw Roxanne look up, and he quickly knocked her out so she wouldn’t see any more. He saw Sir sink to his knees, a hand pressed hard against his mouth and tears streaming down his face. He knelt at Sir’s side and pulled him into a hug.

“I’ll take Miss Ritchi home,” Minion whispered. 

Sir nodded quickly.

Minion rose slowly, untied Miss Ritchi, and carried her gently to the invisible car.

He drove in silence, the scene of other Sir’s death replaying over and over in his mind. He carried Miss Ritchi into her apartment gently, the building’s other occupants too distracted by what they’d just witnessed to pay any attention to him. He set her carefully on her couch.

He drove back to the Lair, keening softly in lieu of tears that he couldn’t produce. He almost wished he could; people said it makes you feel better. Right now, he felt like nothing would ever make him feel better.

<*>

Syx sat on his feet, hunched over with one hand over his mouth and the other arm wrapped around his stomach. He’d never meant for this to happen; how could this have happened? Wayne was supposed to be invincible! He rocked slightly in place and sobbed.

A hand rested gently on his back, and he froze. Minion was back already?

“Syx?” a worried voice called. _That’s not Minion._

Syx lifted his head slowly.

There was Wayne, leaning over him, worried. _Alive._

“Syx, are you alright?”

Syx gaped at him.

“Uh, Syx?”

Syx practically tackled him in a hug. Wayne froze, then hugged back for a long moment. 

Then Syx pulled back and punched him square in the face. This accomplished nothing except hurting Syx’s hand.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Syx screamed.

Wayne winced and held up his hands in a placating manner.

“I—”

“WHAT THE _FUCK_ WAYNE?! I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!” He pulled him in for another hug. “What were you _thinking?”_ he all but sobbed.

Wayne felt the guilt weigh on him like nothing else ever had.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. He repeated it over and over. He was still repeating when Minion entered the room.

Wayne looked when he heard the footsteps. Minion had such a heartbroken expression on his face that Wayne felt like crying himself.

“Oh, no Minion,” he whimpered.

Minion spotted him, froze, and his face lit up. He made a beeline for him.

“SIR, YOU’RE OKAY!” he cried, pulling Syx and Wayne both into a gorilla hug. How had Wayne thought Minion would be angry with him? Somehow, relief was even worse. “What happened? How—”

“I’ll tell you what happened!” Syx cried, ripping himself away from the group hug. “Metro Mahn here thought he could _fake his death_ , and there would be no consequences!” He began to pace aggressively around the room. “What are we going to do now?! We can’t let _Megamind_ have the city, Wayne! But who’s supposed to stop him if Metro Mahn is dead? There’s no one!” Syx looked over at Wayne, who looked thoroughly told off, and sighed. “I’m glad you’re okay,” he said, a bit shakily. “More than anything, I’m glad you’re alright, but Wayne, what are we going to _do?”_

And Wayne, realizing the fatal flaw in his already terrible plan, replied:

“I don’t know.”

<*>

“The plan is simple,” Syx began in a voice that meant Wayne would not find what he was about to say ‘simple.’ “I’ll take a sample of your DNA, isolate the part that gives you superpowers, create an injector to give that ability to a willing candidate, and have that person take your place as Megamind’s nemesis.”

“I have some concerns,” Wayne said, unconvinced.

“I have a lot of concerns,” Minion interjected worriedly.

“What if they hurt you?” Wayne’s face fell even as he asked.

“You should’ve thought about that before _faking your death,”_ Syx hissed.

Wayne flinched.

“Sorry, no, you’re right,” Syx sighed. “That is a concern. Luckily, I’ve been fighting against you for 15 years. I know how your powers work and how to counteract most of them. Failsafes,” he said with a toothy grin.

“But, they probably won’t fight like Sir,” Minion stated. His concern was written all over his face.

‘I’m pretty durable,” Syx replied, waving off Minion’s concerns. “Even if they get a lucky shot in, I’ll be fine.”

Minion and Wayne shared a skeptical look, but held their tongues.

“Where are you even going to _find_ a willing candidate?” Wayne asked.

Syx grinned again.

“I have an idea about that.”

<*>

The disguise watch was just out of the prototype stages. He’d begun working on it shortly after Wayne’s “death” so he wouldn’t be on Lair-arrest forever, but the prototype was designed for Syx’s use. After the death ray scare, he was wary of letting Wayne try any invention he wasn’t completely confident in, even if technically no one had actually been hurt. Syx had stolen the appearance of a museum employee for testing and was confident no one would recognize him with the disguise in place.

Not even Miss Ritchi.

He had to catch her away from work, or he’d never get a word in. He knew she was in the habit of stopping by a cafe before heading home for the night, so he waited there for her arrival.

She was a little late, late enough that he worried Metro Mahn’s death might’ve lead her to change her routine or something, but he had barely finished the thought when she arrived. She looked exhausted, and Syx couldn’t blame her. He felt almost bad for disturbing her, but he needed a candidate, and he couldn’t think of a better one than Roxanne Ritchi. Only if she was willing, of course.

“You’re Roxanne Ritchi, aren’t you?” he asked as he approached. She startled slightly but quickly recovered.

“That’s me,” she said. She even sounded tired.

“I’m Bernard,” he wasn’t sure where he’d gotten the name from. Maybe the museum guy had a name tag? “I was wondering if I could ask you some questions? For a college journalism project.” That seemed like a good excuse. 

Miss Ritchi seemed hesitant. For a moment, Syx was convinced she’d turn him down, but...

“Alright sure.”

He smiled and sat in the booth across from her.

”Thank you. I’ll try not to take up too much of your time!” He opened his notebook to a blank page. He spent a while asking her random questions to build up to the important one. She answered amicably, and he let himself think for a moment that it was nice getting to know her. He shut that thought down real quick. “One last question,” he said. “A bit of a hypothetical, if that’s alright?”

“Alright.” Miss Ritchi smiled at him and he was glad he hadn’t programmed the disguise watch to show his blush.

“Ahem, right,” he pulled himself together quickly. “If you were given the option, would you be a superhero?” He hoped she’d say yes. Miss Ritchi was maybe the one person on Earth who would understand this game and its importance. She was by far the safest bet.

“No, I don’t think I would,” she sighed. “And not just because of what happened to Metro Man. I don’t think I could handle the responsibility. The expectations...” She glanced at him and seemed to pick up on his disappointment. “Sorry, I guess that’s not a very exciting answer.”

“No, no, I’m with you,” he replied. “That’s actually pretty good. Most people forget about that part. All they see is the glory.” He sighed and stood up. “Thank you for your time.” With that, he strode away.

Now what?

<*>

Syx was barely out the door when he heard a man say:

“I’d love to have powers like that!”

Well. That sounded promising. He strode in the direction of the voice. A man was talking on the phone outside a news van.

“Saving the day, being loved by everyone! What could be better?!” 

Syx waited patiently for the man to finish his call. Once he hung up, Syx strode into view.

“Hello. A pleasure to meet you. My name is Bernard, and I couldn’t help overhearing...” Syx began.

The man tilted his head.

“Yeah?”

“How would you like the chance to be a superhero?” The man’s responding grin made Syx a bit uneasy, but he was out of options. It’s not like he knew where to find Jace or Cameron.

“You can do that?”

“I wouldn’t offer if I couldn’t, Mr.?”

“Hal.”

“Well, Mr. Hal, you’re in luck.”

<*>

Candidate found and instructed to simply “wait for orders,” Syx got to work on isolating Wayne’s powers.

Roxanne, meanwhile, decided she was done waiting around to see what would happen next. She went looking for the Lair.

She had a vague idea of where to look. After all, she’d been there enough times, even if she never actually experienced the drive. All she really needed was a clue to go on.

A giant fake observatory was a pretty compelling clue.

“Gotcha,” she whispered with a smirk. If Megamind wasn’t going to bring her to the lair, she’d just have to do it herself. She may be pissed as hell about the whole ’murdering Metro Man’ thing—she’d had a good rapport with the hero and saw him as something approaching a friend—but she was a reporter, dammit. She had the right to a little professional curiosity. Okay, and she might’ve been a little worried.

Her mind kept going back to Megamind’s face after the laser fired. His hand over his mouth, and had those been tears in his eyes? That was hardly the appropriate reaction for a villain who’d just destroyed his nemesis after years of trying.

He may claim to be evil, and he certainly was a supervillain, but she’d never hated him before. She felt entitled to a bit of worry.

So, she snuck into the lair.

Nothing could’ve prepared her for what she found there.

She crept in through the fake wall, snuck through a few empty corridors, and followed the sound of voices to a large room. It wasn’t one she was familiar with. It was well furnished, in light neutral tones unbefitting of a supervillain, with a large television on one wall that was surrounded by bookshelves. A long corner couch took up the majority of the other two walls she could see.

On said corner couch was _goddamn_ _Metro Man._ He was working his way through a cartoonishly tall stack of sandwiches, sitting right there next to Minion, as the two listened to Megamind explain some complicated thing that Roxanne would normally have payed attention to, but she couldn’t cuz that was _goddamn Metro Man!_

_“What the fuck?!”_ she yelled. She couldn’t stop herself! He was alive! On Megamind’s couch! _What?!_

All three jumped. Megamind whirled around to stare at her. They froze, and a silence fell over the room.

Megamind was the first to break it.

“Miss Ritchi!” he said, chuckling awkwardly. “What are you doing here?”

“Never mind what _I’m_ doing here. What’s _he_ doing here?” She pointed at Metro Man and stared him down as if demanding he explain himself. Which, incidentally, was exactly what she was demanding.

“I,” he stuttered. “I live here?”

Megamind facepalmed. Clearly, he wasn’t supposed to tell her that.

“Wha— You— He—?” she turned to Minion. He just nodded sheepishly. “But! You were dead! I saw you die!”

“Yeah, we all thought we saw him die!” Megamind looked peeved. “Because _somebody_ did the thing we _agreed_ _years ago_ that he wouldn’t do, and he didn’t think to _inform anyone_.” He shook his head violently, a habit Roxanne had noticed he had before when he was particularly annoyed.

“I— Wha—“ she fumbled. “What is going _on?”_

Megamind sighed.

“I suppose we owe you an explanation.”

<*>

“Let me get this straight,” Roxanne began. The other three nodded encouragingly. Simultaneously, which was a bit creepy, but she ignored that thought for the time being. “You’re brothers.”

They nodded.

“The whole hero/villain thing is fake?”

Another set of nods.

“And _you,”_ she pointed at Met— _Wayne_ , “faked your _death_ because you wanted to retire.”

Wayne nodded alone this time.

“Without telling _them,”_ she waved a hand to indicate Minion and Mega— _Syx_ , “you were doing it.”

A much more sheepish nod.

“You tricked your brother into thinking he killed you?”

“I’m not proud of it,” Wayne replied quietly.

“Yeah, you better not be!” Roxanne buried her face in her hands and groaned. “This is a lot to take in.”

“Do you want something to drink?” Minion asked, rising. “We’ve only got water and milk, but...” he trailed off.

“I’m fine,” Roxanne sighed with a tired smile. “Thank you, Minion.”

He smiled softly and settled himself back into his seat.

“You know, it actually explains a few things,” Roxanne mumbled. She shook her head and fixed her gaze on Syx. “Okay, so your plan is to give Wayne’s powers to someone else so ‘Megamind,’” she made exaggerated finger-quotes around the word, “can’t take over the city?”

“That’s the gist of it,” Syx replied.

Roxanne paused. Her mind went back to the interview with Bernard in the cafe. _If you were given the option, would you be a superhero?_

“Was that you?!” She shouted, forgetting in her realization that the others wouldn’t know to what she was referring.

Syx seemed to know exactly what she meant, anyway; he blushed.

“Yeah.”

“If I had known why you were asking, I’d’ve said yes!”

“That defeats the purpose!” Syx argued. “We need someone who actually _wants_ this job, not someone who feels obligated to take it. That’s how Wayne felt, and look what happened!” He threw his hands in the air dramatically.

“I guess you have a point,” Roxanne conceded. “Did you find someone?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

<*>

A few days after that weird conversation with an even weirder stranger, Hal woke up feeling... different. Stronger. When he ripped his bedroom door clean off its hinges, he was sure. 

_“Awesome!”_

<*>

Admittedly, Hal was a terrible choice. Syx felt, as he watched Tighten go bad _shockingly_ quickly, that he should’ve run a background check. Maybe multiple.

Not willing to let Wayne’s terrible retirement plan go completely to waste, Megamind went out into battle disguised as Metro Mahn while Minion created a distraction disguised as Megamind. It was a great plan that, by all accounts, should’ve worked. Minion’s distraction was amazing, and Megamind, with the diffuser hidden in the nearby invisible car, made a flawless Metro Mahn entrance. Everything was going perfectly to plan.

Until Minion was injured.

Until Hal recognized Megamind’s weird pronunciations (stressful situations make proper pronunciation a bit more difficult for him).

Then the fight turned brutal.

Wayne watched the live broadcast with bated breath. _Why hasn’t Syx used the diffuser? Where the heck was Minion? Why wasn’t he_ doing _something? Was Minion alright?_

Tighten got in a particularly nasty hit, and Wayne was out the door.

<*>

Megamind had the diffuser in his hands, and Tighten was holding him a few hundred feet off the ground by his collar. 

Syx had a choice.

Use the diffuser and fall to his death?

Or don’t use the diffuser, and let Tighten kill him here and now?

It wasn’t really much of a choice, but seeing the fountain did make it easier. Syx stuck the diffuser’s nozzle up Hal’s nose and activated it.

Hal’s powers drained, and they were falling.

<*>

They were falling. Syx was _falling_ , and Wayne could only see it because of his super vision, and he wasn’t sure he could make it. He couldn’t stop time, not without his rattle that was presently hanging, useless, by the door back in the lair, and he couldn’t move fast enough, and _Syx was still falling—!_

He was blinded by a bright flash of blue. All he could hear was the splash.

<*>

Wayne landed a split second later. Syx still had his costume; nobody was even looking at him. Not that he’d notice if anyone was.

“Syx?” he whispered as he approached the fountain. “Are you okay?”

Silence.

_“Syx?”_ This time it was more of a whimper. The fountain bubbled quietly and:

_Splash!_

Syx surfaced with a deep gasp.

“Okay, dehydration is a more unpleasant process than I thought,” he declared, reaching into the fountain and pulling out the de-gun. 

Wayne could’ve cried.

“Uh, Wayne? What are you doing here?” Syx tilted his big blue head. 

Wayne maybe did cry, just a little.

“You— I thought you were _dead!”_ Wayne cried, throwing his arms around his brother. “That was a terrible plan!”

“Haha! Revahnge!” Syx cackled. “How do you like it?” He playfully shoved Wayne, which didn’t move him at all.

“You’re right. I’m the worst,” he sniffled with a small smile.

“Megamind!” A familiar voice shouted.

Wayne stepped back as Roxanne sprinted toward them. She flung her arms around Syx’s shoulders. “Thank goodness you’re alright!” He smiled softly at her, a faint blush on his face. Oh, Wayne and Minion were gonna have a good laugh about... wait.

“Where’s Minion?” Wayne asked. 

They heard a cough on the other side of the fountain. They rounded it quickly to find Minion’s damaged gorilla suit lying on the ground. The glass was shattered and all the water had drained out.

Minion’s speech was suitably dramatic. As were his dying noises. Roxanne was _almost_ convinced.

Wayne and Syx were not.

Syx gingerly lifted Minion out of the broken glass and promptly tossed him into the fountain.

“Drama queen.”

“Guess I just needed a little swim,” Minion replied with a cheesy smile. “Besides, I can’t let you two have all the fun, tricking your loved ones into thinking you died.”

Both men looked appropriately sheepish at that.

The police pulled the disoriented Hal out of the fountain, but the heroes didn’t stick around long enough to see him arrested. Roxanne went back to work, and everyone else went home.

<*>

Megamind became the new hero of Metro City. His criminal empire was carefully dismantled, and nearly all those involved pardoned. Syx had done a lot of convincing for that one.

The damages from the Tighten Incident were cleared up over time, with help from Megamind’s brain-bots, and Metro Man was fully retired. Not that anyone knew he was alive. All Metro Man sightings that day were attributed to Megamind in disguise, even if the timeline didn’t _quite_ make sense. There were conspiracy theories, of course, but most people ignored those or saw them as mildly amusing at best. Kind of like “Elvis Sightings.”

As far as anyone knew, only one person other than Roxanne figured out the truth. She’d over-analyzed the footage of both Metro Man’s last fight and the Tighten incident, and she knew.

She’d done a lot of legwork to get this meeting. Meetings with the mayor, digging up long buried evidence of missing persons reports and citizenship paperwork, presenting any tiny bit of evidence she could collect to prove her claims. A single school report card ended up being the lynchpin.

Lady Scott sat on a scratchy couch in City Hall, awaiting her son’s arrival.

“Sheldon,” she breathed, as Megamind himself walked in the door. He tensed.

“That’s not my name,” he deadpanned. “No one’s called me that in a long time.” He sat down abruptly in the armchair across from her. “Lady Scott. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“That’s no way to speak to your mother,” she sighed.

“Good thing you’re not my mother, then.” He said it so casually, crossing his legs and leaning back in his seat, as though it wouldn’t cut her deeply.

She flinched.

“I—” she began, but he cut her off.

“Why did you hide him from me?” 

She didn’t have to ask what he meant. She knew. Of course she did.

“I.” She stopped. How could she explain? Something told her nothing she said would be adequate.

She tried anyway.

“I didn’t want you to.” She stopped again.

There really was no good way to put this, was there? What could she possibly say?

_I didn’t want you to know you aren’t my real son._ She knew he already knew that. He’d always known, hadn’t he?

_I didn’t want you to know I lied to you?_ A bit late for that one.

Eventually, she landed on:

“I didn’t want you to leave.”

He tilted that head of his to one side. He’d done that when he was younger, hadn’t he?

“What do you mean?”

“I thought... if you felt different... you’d leave.” The “you” was plural, and she thought he could tell that. “I thought he’d make you want to go. I was right, wasn’t I?”

Judging by his expression, that had been the wrong thing to say.

“The only one that made us leave was you.” He stood then. “I think we’re done here.”

She stood as well.

“Wait!”

He paused. She didn’t know why.

“I want to speak with Wayne,” she insisted. If Sheldon wouldn’t listen to her, maybe her other son would.

Syx debated what to tell her. Clearly, she knew Wayne wasn’t dead. It was tempting to claim he was anyway, but:

“He didn’t want to see you, either,” he said instead.

He was right in thinking that would hurt her more. Wayne wouldn’t approve, but Syx had always been more fond of _revahnge._

“Then why did _you_ come?” 

It was meant as an attack, and they both knew it. Her tone said _you must care at least a little, or you wouldn't be here, right?_

_Wrong._

”Because if I didn’t, you’d keep trying.” He opened the door. “Goodbye, Lady Scott.”

She could’ve followed him. She could’ve demanded to see her other son. She could’ve begged his forgiveness. She could’ve done a lot of things.

She didn’t. She let him go, and part of her felt like that was the nicest thing she’d ever done for him.

<*>

“How’d it go, Sir,” Minion asked as soon as Syx arrived home.

Syx groaned and flopped on the couch.

“That bad?” Wayne set a mug on the coffee table in front of Syx and took a seat next to him, another mug cradled in his hand. Syx picked up the mug in front of him and sniffed the contents. Hot chocolate. He hummed appreciatively.

“She wanted to see you,” Syx grumbled. He’d been tempted not to mention that, but Wayne deserved to know. 

Wayne winced and shook his head.

“No thanks,” he said. He didn’t elaborate. Syx half-wondered why Wayne didn’t like her. She hadn’t done anything particularly bad to him. Hidden the rattle from him, sure, but at least she’d been nice to him. She never made Wayne feel lesser like she’d done to Syx.

It occurred to Syx that maybe Wayne’s anger was on _Syx’s_ behalf. He held that idea close to his chest and didn’t bring it up

“Want to invite Miss Ritchi over for a movie night?” Minion cautiously suggested. “It might make you feel better?”

Syx nodded shyly and Wayne snorted. That boy was hopeless.

“I’ll go ask,” he said, stretching. 

“Be safe,” Syx called as Wayne flew through a window. He smiled.

“Yeah, yeah.”

<*>

“What are we watching?” Roxanne asked as Wayne set her carefully on the ground.

Minion waved toward the giant collection of DVDs on one of the bookshelves.

“You tell us,” he invited. She examined the shelf carefully, making exaggerated “hmm” sounds. After a moment, she plucked a case off the shelf and turned around.

“Lilo and Stitch?” She snorted at the resounding cheers. 

It may be a little weird, having a movie night with a retired superhero, a former “villain” turned hero, and a talking fish, but honestly?

She wouldn’t have it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading! I’d say this was a long time coming, but I honestly wrote out the whole first draft the day I got the idea... Still, it was fun to write, and my sibling called me evil a few times as I talked out plot points with them, which was fun. Fun fact: I considered briefly having only Minion be aware Wayne was alive, but I scrapped it because I couldn’t figure out why Syx would give someone else Wayne’s powers in that situation.
> 
> Because I am supremely bad at naming things (especially characters) I got the names for Megamind from other fanfics that are amazing and you absolutely should go read right now. 
> 
> Sheldon: A Day In The Life Of Sheldon Scott by SilverSpiderArt  
> (archiveofourown.org/works/5976576)
> 
>   
> Syx: the Safe If We Stand Close Together series by setepenre_set  
> (archiveofourown.org/series/421099)  
> 
> 
> And if you’re looking for even more Megamind, I highly recommend dalniente (archiveofourown.org/users/dalniente) who has some awesome angst in particular, and catnippackets (catnippackets.tumblr.com) on tumblr who has a few very good pieces of Megamind fan art.
> 
> Thanks again!
> 
> P.S. I've been considering writing more for this if anyone is interested? I have a few ideas of what Minion was doing before Syx and Wayne found him...


End file.
